Harris Williams & Co. Advises Mister Car Wash on its Sale to Leonard Green & Partners, LP

RICHMOND, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Harris Williams & Co., a preeminent middle market investment bank focused on the advisory needs of clients worldwide, announces the sale of Mister Car Wash, the largest operator of full-service and express car washes in the country and a portfolio company of ONCAP, to Leonard Green & Partners, LP (Leonard Green). Harris Williams & Co. acted as lead financial advisor to Mister Car Wash. The transaction, which closed on August 21, 2014, was led by Joe Conner, Jason Bass, Jershon Jones, and Jeff Kidd of Harris Williams & Co.'s Transportation & Logistics (T&L) Group, and Chris Williams from the firm's Richmond office.

“Mister Car Wash has established itself as the premier operator in the car wash and lube center industry. Leonard Green's longstanding experience with world-class multi-site operators will aid in the company's continued expansion,” said Joe Conner, managing director in Harris Williams & Co.'s T&L Group. “Harris Williams & Co. is proud to have partnered with Mister Car Wash as the company enters the next phase of growth and we believe they have found a great partner.”

“The car wash sector is highly fragmented with 95% of operators owning five locations or less. Mister Car Wash's track record and strategy have driven both scale and best-in-class operations,” added Jershon Jones, vice president in Harris Williams & Co.'s T&L Group. “Mister Car Wash is poised to build on its outstanding track record and lead the industry for the foreseeable future.”

Founded in 1996, Mister Car Wash operates 134 car washes and 32 lube centers in 14 states across the country, making it the largest car wash and lube center chain in the United States. The company, headquartered in Tucson, AZ with 4,800 employees, services more than 15 million vehicles annually. Mister Car Wash has established itself as the leading acquirer in the industry, having completed over 25 acquisitions representing over 70 stores since 2009.

ONCAP is the middle market private equity platform of Onex and invests in and builds shareholder value in North American small and mid-size companies that are leaders in their defined market niche and possess meaningful growth potential. With offices in Toronto, New York and London, Onex is one of the oldest and most successful private equity firms in North America. The company has approximately $22 billion of assets under management, including $6 billion of Onex capital in private equity and credit securities. For 30 years, Onex has built more than 75 businesses, generating a gross multiple of capital invested of 3.0 times from its core private equity activities, resulting in a 28 percent compound annual return on realized, substantially realized and publicly traded investments. Onex shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the stock symbol OCX.

Leonard Green is one of the nation's preeminent private equity firms with over $15 billion of private equity capital raised since inception. Founded in 1989, the firm has invested in 73 companies with aggregate value of over $88 billion in the form of traditional buyouts, going-private transactions, recapitalizations, growth capital investments, corporate carve-outs and selective public equity and debt positions. Based in Los Angeles, CA, Leonard Green invests in established companies that are leaders in their markets.

Harris Williams & Co. (www.harriswilliams.com), a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. PNC, is a preeminent middle market investment bank focused on the advisory needs of clients worldwide. The firm has deep industry knowledge, global transaction expertise and an unwavering commitment to excellence. Harris Williams & Co. provides sell-side and acquisition advisory, restructuring advisory, board advisory, private placements and capital markets advisory services.

Harris Williams & Co.'s T&L Group is dedicated to providing superior merger and acquisition advisory services to companies in a variety of attractive niches across the broader transportation, logistics and automotive aftermarket industries. The group is the national leader in the automotive aftermarket with experience spanning manufacturers, distributors, service providers, branded products and retailers. For more information on the firm's T&L Group and other recent transactions, visit the T&L Group's section of the Harris Williams & Co. website.

Investment banking services are provided by Harris Williams LLC, a registered broker-dealer and member of FINRA and SIPC, and Harris Williams & Co. Ltd, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Harris Williams & Co. is a trade name under which Harris Williams LLC and Harris Williams & Co. Ltd conduct business.

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